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I have never participated in a forum before but I need some help. I own a '99 A-4 1.8T and had to replace the engine when my timing belt failed last April. Have you had any luck locating someone to help you recoup your expenses, either as part of the class action suit or otherwise?
Thanks much in advance.
More info on turbochargers.
(2) It's a good idea to see if the control arms were replaced. They are supposed to be notoriously weak (that said, my '99 A4 has the original set at 82K)
(3) Common, minor problems for the B5 A4 include (a) side mirrors rust, (b) sunroof stops working, (c) headlight washers crap out, and (d) plastic molding on the low part of the body falls off.
All, in all, I really like my 2.8 A4. I have spent an average of $600-800 /year of maintenance in the 3-1/2 years of ownership. It's not the cheapest car to maintain, and it can't be considered a "sports car" at all. It's too heavy. But it drives and handles very solidly.
You'll probably find the rear seat is cramped for bigger people.
If you have the extended warranty, and the same problems that you had under the manufacturers warranty crop up again, they now make you pay $50 bucks for it!. Oh and if you do get warranty work done to your car such as breaks, DONT JUST DRIVE AWAY assuming that they replaced your breaks. The liars where I go to for service said they replaced the breaks on my invoice, but, LOW and BEHOLD when I looked at the car, they did not replace them at all!
when i read this, and i bet others read this they are going to think: i wonder if the valet knew how to drive stick? or i wonder if the valet took your vehicle on a "test" drive?
vehicle driving fine one day, and the next it is DOA after leaving it in the custody of someone else... it's possible it just failed on it's own, but that's harder to believe than the other scenario.
if this happened recently, and you seem to indicate as much, perhaps a call to the hotel's security or main desk might be in order to see if anyone else reported vehicle damage around the same period.
true story: i used valet parking when i brought my wife to a major hospital to deliver our first child. a couple days later when we go to get the car and put the car seat in, i give the valet my card w/number.
after waiting an eternity - he shows up driving a vehicle of much higher expense, and his words to me are: "this isn't your car is it?" to which I reply - not even close - is the hospital running a special vehicle upgrade with every newborn? the car was eventually located and a spare key was obtained to get the proper vehicle to my house many hours later.
things happen.
As you can see the problem is not with the cars it is with their dealer network and their own customer service attitude. Their "experts" even told me that the dealers I have been to cause them serious issues. But does the company do anything about it or take a stand to win a customer back? Nope.
It is a scary thought knowing that when things get tough, the company (that made the product) is not there for you. What is worse is when they keep saying "I am having a unique experience" they do little to correct it. Judging by these forums my experience is not unique. If you are wondering if those with A8s get better service they do not. I met quite a few A8 and A6 owners not happy. Same pattern. AOA even asked me to have them call them direct so they can help. If AOAs dealer/service network does not have a red flag that shows a customer (especially an A8) comes to the dealer 10 times for the same issues then they do not deserve that customer.
My own issues had tech announcements 2 years old related to them. 4 dealers and AOA never read their own documents (most of my issues could have been resolved years ago)
I don't like bashing, I like to think that mistakes happen and a company can redeem themselves. AOA blew that hope to bits. 3 years ago when this all started Audi Customer Care told me they only sell cars - how true it is.
http://www.audiovox.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001- &storeId=10001&productId=14946&langId=-1 )?
Backup option is just a plain vanilla XM unit transmitting over FM but it'd be neat to use the car's own satellite capacity. Or has Audi made it such that you have to buy their overpriced goodies?
I have the same heating problem. I wanted to know if you found the problem and if it fixed your heat. I am about to replace the timing belt and water pump but can not belive this will fix my heat. If you could or if you know where I could get more information on this please let me know.
thank you, pierre
At 55,000 the car died while running. They said it was the "oil pump" and replaced it under the sludge extended warranty. They had it for three weeks. Two weeks after it came out of the shop it died again on the highway..This time they say is is the "fule pump" and that it is not related to the oil pump. would love to know your problems
Thanks
However, look at the specific problems you are reading about on this forum and how Audi service centres and the manufacturer deal with them. You are reading about similar problems by different car owners all over north america. You are reading about how the Audi service centres do not know how to solve the problems. You are reading about how problems crop up over and over again. This is what is significant in this forum.
Furthermore, I bet you can see that there are forums for problem reporting for other cars too. But, the A4 seems to have the highest number. This probable because the A4 is poorly wired or poorly manufactured. Also, service centre mechanics don't know how to fix a problem because their "computer" does not show any problem even though the owner can tell you exactly what it is. The A4 and Audi and its service centres do not back up their product and the owner suffers.
By the way, think about all of the other owners out there who are just sucking it up and going along driving a poorly performing care with many manufacturing defects!
ALs.. sometimes I have to crank it over 2-3 time in order for it to start.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20051124.wxwhaudi24/BNStory/s- pecialGlobeAuto/
Quote:"Another major issue in North America is quality. In the most recent 2005 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study of owner-reported problems in the first 90 days of ownership, Audi ranked No. 8, an improvement of three spots over 2004, but still far behind Lexus, the No. 1 quality brand.
More troubling, in Power's Vehicle Dependability Study -- which measures owner-reported problems in three-year-old vehicles -- Audi ranks near the bottom of the pack. In fact, at 312 problems per 100 vehicles, Audi ranks just ahead of Daewoo, a true budget brand."
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/cc/02-05a4.htm
Quote:"The A4 has generally been a reliable car, with electrical problems being the most common shortcomings according to Consumer Reports. Faulty ignition coil packs and window regulators are two of the main culprits in that regard. BMW's 3 Series offers slightly better overall reliability according to Consumer Reports, but the Acura TL and Lexus IS300 take top reliability honours in this quartet of cars. "
It was serviced for this problem with a brake rebuild about eightmonths ago and is recurring.
The rear discs were glowing red yesterday, and I am about to call the dealer.
Has anyone else had this problem?
Since it's certified, it comes with 6yrs/100k warranty along with 4yrs/50k free maintenance. Between the two, shouldn't that cover most of the problems on this forum? I'd hate to have excessive repair costs + a simultaneous car payment (am going for 60 mos. loan).
I appreciate any help. I didn't want to make an impulse purchase - the car is gorgeous, but I worry about reliability and repair costs. I just thought I'd post here to see if I could get any feedback. This is a really terrific research site.
Thanks all
Good luck.
2001 A4 1.8T manual
I have an Audi A4, 1.8T, 2002. As soon as my 4 year warranty expired suprise suprise, problems began.
The check engine light came on. After a visit to Autozone, I finally found out that the following error code was causing the problem:
"P0171: system runs too lean". Anybody has any idea what the problem might be? I was told that it might be a senson malfunction and that i might have to replace it (i was told it costs around $180). Anybody experienced similar problem? The car has been running without any noticable change in behavior with "check engine light" on for 4 weeks now. Do you think that I might cause more damage if I don't have it fixed?
Thanks in advance for your input.
Check out http://www.autohausaz.com/audi-auto-parts/audi-emissions-oxygen-sensors.html for more info.
I keep hearing loud noise coming form the back side of the car , it gets louder when i get closer to where the fuel tank is, some one told me it could be the fuel pump inside the tank need to be replaced does any one experience some thing like that could it be really the fuel pump or some thing else,
They should of recalled the cars to replace the engines but they are just trying to hold us to a stringent test so they can save money. Piece of junk engine.
I got my 2006 A4 Avant (quatro, automatic) this summer and about a month after driving it I noticed some 'kicking' behaviour whenever I come to a stop - the car simply 'kicks' right before stopping. This behaviour happened occasionally so duplicating it at the dealership service shop was a bit difficult. Consequently, the dealership did not find anything wrong with the car (total number of visits regarding this problem = 4). Finally, the dealership general manager said that this behaviour is normal and that it is the breaking system with its security features (note: service manager was not aware of this feature).
The thing is that none of the cars that I had driven in the past behaved like that, even my friends Camry drives and stops as smooth and quiet as possible. Currently, my Audi 'kicks' everytime I come to a stop and this is extremely annoying.
Has anybody experienced a smilar problem? Can you please advise?
Thanks,
Simon